October 5, 2010

Amherst
Club

Meeting Notes of October 5, 2010

President
Vivienne Carey opened the meeting at 12:50 pm.Guests were brought by Rachel Mustin, Nancy Brose and
Carolyn Holstein.

Announcements
were many:

1.Vivienne asked that in the future, folks with announcements fill out a
form with the vital information and give it to the scribe for the day(Michael Greenebaum knows who that will
be.)She’s hoping that this will
give more time for the speakers.

2.Ruth Miller had a written announcement about Band Day on November 6th
at the UMass football game.Please
let her know if you wish to attend by Oct 6th.

8.Harrison Gregg said that a Club team of 4 noted for their trivia will
participate in the Trivia Bee Oct 28th, a fund raiser for the
schools. It’s a great evening and we all need to attend & cheer our team to
victory!Our own Susie
Lowenstein plays tunes on the piano to heighten the spirit.

Program
Chair Phyllis Lehrer introduced the speaker, Onawumi Jean Moss, Club member,
retired Amherst College administrator and Master Storyteller for all ages.

Ms.
Moss told us a story about “Miss Beaver” from James Michener’s book, Creatures
of the Kingdom.She chose this
story because it’s a love story and reminded her of herself – a working woman
facing the challenges of life.

The
story begins with Miss Beaver having to leave her family lodge at 2 years old to
fend for herself (or be killed!).She swam upstream, hoping to find three things – food, a home and a
man.She liked the high brow aspen
leaves and bark to eat, not the pedestrian cottonwood.

After
4 days of searching, living in the muddy banks and eating cottonwood, a
beautiful smell of cestrum came to her from a handsome male beaver. She was smitten.However, that handsome male turned out
to be taken and she was chased away by a possessive female.

A
few days later she met another Very Handsome beaver, preening himself in the
sun.He was attracted to her as
well, but soon found another female more attractive than she.They both turned against her and chased
her away.Oh dear.

Moving
on, Miss Beaver found a limestone house with many rooms for herself.Perfect.

She
started alone to build a dam for the lodge, knowing well how to fell a tree and
drag it to the dam.She wanted a
partner, but could manage for herself.

One
day an older beaver appeared.He
was scarred, had damaged feet and his fur was all matted.He was not handsome at all, but he
brought her aspen leaves, her favorite.He tried to tell her that her house wasn’t in a good location, it would
flood.They fought and argued, but
Miss Beaver held firm.Mr.
Beaver stayed with her, brought food she liked to the lodge and planned the
building of their dam.Miss Beaver
did the work.(Surprised?)

Eventually
the beavers mated and had four kits the following spring.Each spring the house flooded and they
had to move out for a while. He fussed, but they stayed together, told stories,
complimented each other and built a solid relationship.They had 8 years of babies.

Mr.
Beaver grew aged.He could not
walk well and eventually faded away.

Miss
Beaver continued to work with what she had, remained in her own home alone,
with occasional visits from her children.She often sang the song “Everything must change;
Nothing stays the same.”

Ms.
Moss sang this song for us, which ended the story.

The
audience had been spellbound throughout.

Ms.
Moss answered a few questions about how she began to tell stories (in church as
a child), how she adapts the slant of the story for children, the background
information she gathers in order to tell a story, etc.Some information:beavers can stay underwater for as much
as 9 minutes without air; babies are born on the (male?) beaver’s tail; the
aphrodisiac cestrum is produced in a beaver’s cheek, and spread over the body
in order to attract a mate.